When discussing symbolism in your art course, there are a number of ways you could interpret it, and several areas that could spur you on to interesting research paper topics. You could look into the movement of symbolism in art history, discuss the use of symbols in political art and propaganda, or look into the way religious symbols are used in artistic mediums.

Whether you are an art major or filling a requirement, there is a high probability that writing a research paper on art and artists is in your future as a college student.

Find a good art related topic idea here. (Credit: SBU.edu)

The art world offers a range of ideas that you can gear towards your interests or a specific class, whether that means focusing on art history, specific artistic movements or even one or more famous artists. Read more →

Good grief! Charlie Brown, Snoopy and the gang have returned to the animated screen in the new Blue Sky Studios Peanuts Movie. But unlike their annual holiday appearances in films like A Charlie Brown Christmas, Blue Sky Studios features them in a whole new way: 3d. Using this modern animation style rather than the 2d animation more nostalgic fans find familiar, Blue Sky Studios hopes to introduce the Peanuts characters to a new generation.

Learn more about how animation was used in the Peanuts Movie. (Credit: 20th Century Fox)

But has it worked? Or have nostalgic viewers held back from embracing the new format? If you are considering a research paper topic for your animation or history of comics class, take a look at The Peanuts Movie.Read more →

The fashion industry has managed to make stratospheric profits by producing affordable trendy clothes and lots of them. These profits are made possible by thousands of workers who labor in sweatshops for pennies an hour. “Fast fashion” as it is called, is made largely overseas where human rights take a back seat to production and profit.

Find out more about the fashion industry. (Credit: CNN Money)

What social responsibility do companies like the Gap and Wal-Mart owe to their workers? One of the top documentary films of 2015, The True Cost, will inform you and inspire you to write your next research paper. Read more →

The new biopic movie Straight Outta Compton chronicles the rise of the gangsta rap group N.W.A. (Ni**as With Attitude) whose first studio album “Straight Outta Compton” in 1988 revolutionized hip hop music and culture. Controversy erupted when N.W.A. songs contained lyrics depicting the brutal truth about living in Compton, a poor and racially charged town in southern Los Angeles County.

See how censorship, police abuse and law enforcement are viewed in Straight Outta Compton. (Credit: Universal Pictures)

The movie offers interesting research paper topics on censorship, police abuse and law enforcement. Read more →

In the continuing search for good research paper topics, consider looking into the use of symbolism in art. Just as in literature, those who express themselves through media such as paint, clay or even architecture often use symbols as a way to further their own artistic expression. Dream symbols and color symbolism are just two symbolism examples.

Can you spot the symbolism in this art piece? (Credit: Prisma Archivo/Alamy)

You might think that all symbolic art is abstract art but that’s not the case. Beginning with cave drawings and progressing through today, artists continue to elevate the meaning of their work through the use of symbols. Read more →

Elements of the movie Woman in Gold would make good research paper topics. The true story is about an elderly Jewish survivor of World War II who sues the Austrian government for the return of the Gustav Klimt artwork “Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I,” also known as the Woman in Gold, which was stolen by the Nazis.

Learn more about the Woman in Gold artwork for your research paper. (Credit: BBC Films)

For your art history or history class, consider writing a term paper on the legal and historical aspects of the famous painting. Read more →

The history of comic books now spans several generations. As Marvel Comics celebrates its 75th anniversary and unveils a new slate of comic book movies to come in the next five years, the genre is rich with research paper topics.

Marvel Comics celebrates its 75th anniversary. (Credit: Comic Vine)

Start from looking at the issues of crime and justice in comics to the way comic books have handled gender and race issues. Read more →

For your architecture research paper, consider combing through architecture databases and Architecture magazine website articles for interesting developments in the field. For example, some good research paper topics could include the activities of Architecture for Humanity, which is providing refugee shelters; the winner of this year’s Pritzker Prize for architectural designs; or the social experience of architectural enthusiasm.

A unique piece of architecture includes the Haesley Nine Bridges, designed by the 2014 Pritzker Prize winner Shigeru Ban. (Credit: JongOh Kim)

Architects help refugees

With large populations of refugees from natural disasters and political unrest, places like Haiti, Syria and Lagos, Nigeria have sizeable refugee camps. Read more →

The recent Monuments Men movie starring George Clooney and Matt Damon, based on the book by Robert M. Edsel, is remarkably accurate for a Hollywood production. Many of the characters and locations were based on real people and places. For good research paper topics, watch the movie for the basis of the dramatic story, then consult a scholarly article on art preservation, or research some best history books on World War II operations or biographies of real Monuments Men and women. Read more →